Monday, April 30

Peasant Cooking: Passatelli in Brodo

Passatelli is a rustic Italian pasta meets German spatzle, noodle/dumpling made of breadcrumbs, grated parmesan, eggs, nutmeg & lemon zest. Found on dinner tables across Le Marche & Emilia Romagna, passatelli is best served in chicken broth but can also be dressed with sauce. (Some recipes call for no flour, others just a handful - this is a hotly debated topic even within Le Marche.)
I love pasta, I love bread, I love cheese and I love passatelli!

It may not look pretty but it is surprisingly light with a nice bite, and a lovely nutty flavor from the parmesan & nutmeg.

Beat the eggs in a bowl.
In a separate bowl add all the dry ingredients including the nutmeg & lemon zest. Make a well in the center of the breadcrumb mixture bowl, pour in the beaten eggs and mix together to form a dough.

Turn it out onto a board & knead it 10 times. If it's still tacky dust it with a little flour. Then wrap it up in plastic & let rest for at least an hour.

After that push the dough through the passatelli press directly into simmering broth.
(Note: If you are making this to serve with sauce, allow it dry on the board for a few minutes.)

Allow to cook for a couple minutes in the simmering broth. Serve with fresh grated Parmesan over top.